


four, three, now its you and me

by Palmtree_Panicking



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Everyone Needs A Hug, First Meetings, Made Up Origin Stories Because The Author Is A Cuck, Poor Knux, anyway i capitalised on it, author is a sonic fan so this fic is cursed with questionable quality control, bro i want a sequel right now, guess who saw sonc movie and died, hire me sega, im not a huge knuckles fan but sonic adventure lore is best lore, knuckles is babb, main trio is babb, original character death, paramount give me sequel or else ill boycott, poor tails!! :(, spoilers for sonic movie SHIT, the echidna tribe fucking SUCKS, what do you mean knuckles wasnt in the sonic movie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-16
Updated: 2020-02-16
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:41:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22753423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Palmtree_Panicking/pseuds/Palmtree_Panicking
Summary: In a world halfway across the universe, a trio experience moments that will define their lives for the next ten years.(or; Tails and Knuckles meet the night before Sonic runs to Earth.)
Relationships: Knuckles the Echidna & Miles "Tails" Prower
Comments: 23
Kudos: 196





	four, three, now its you and me

**Author's Note:**

> hi! hewwo! first sonic fic here despite having a ton of unfinished WIPs, oh lord who knew this film was actually going to be watchable?!! and have emotional heart im crying rn sonic was so cute—
> 
> anyway! this weird-ass oneshot was chugged out in the same amount of time it took to develop the soundtrack for sonic chronicles (five minutes, give or take), so apologies if the quality is poor at times! i just thought this idea was super cool and i wanted to know where the fuck knuckles the fuckles was during the events of this film, so! here we are!
> 
> i hope u enjoy <3

* * *

“We must find the hedgehog,” The Chief yells. “Where is the hedgehog?!”

Across the island of Green Hill, the Echidna Clan searches for a being no longer on their turf. One member leaps through the trees, brushing by particles left by constant ring usage; another digs under the ground, sniffing for the scent of the mutated creature once hidden away from the world.

Pachacamac mutters under his breath, pinching his forehead - they’re so close. So close to finding that blasted owl, so close to finding the power needed to reign supreme.

The power to save his kind.

Another member of the clan, only five years of age, approaches the Elder. Their mask hides the pout on their muzzle, the bangles on their wrists shaking alongside their hands.

Pachacamac’s gaze wanders to the child at his feet, and his eyes soften. He kneels, softly cupping the young echidna’s face. “Is everything alright, child?” He gently whispers.

“I don’t understand,” Knuckles’ voice is quiet, gentle on the ears. “Why do we need to find a hedgehog?”

Pachacamac stares for a moment, blinking, before he sighs. “There are things in this world that hold power, child. These things will keep our tribe alive.”

Knuckles is silent for a moment, toying with the frayed fabric of his gloves. He looks back up, into the Chief’s eyes. “Is the hedgehog powerful?”

Pachacamac nods. “Yes.”

“Will they help us?”

“Yes, my child.”

Knuckles hums in thought, the gears visibly running through his head. He turns to where the rest of his tribe is spreading out; there are spears, nets, bows set with arrows tightly held in strong, unbreakable grips.

The child’s face suddenly falls, his eyes wide and vulnerable -- but he says nothing.

Pachacamac pats Knuckles’ back, seemingly blissful of the child’s reaction, as he begins barking orders at the rest of the clan. The red-furred echidna is left to ponder, alone in a clearing smack-dab in the middle of Green Hill Zone.

(Behind Knuckles, an older member of the tribe approaches the Chief, whispering under his breath.

Pachacamac visibly stiffens.

_“Does she have the Emerald?”_

The member nods. Pachacamac dips his head for just a moment, before calling over a group of echidnas, watching the rest explore from afar.)

Knuckles suddenly hears something -- his clan is pushed to the back of his mind as he looks around, before spotting a set of eyes hidden in the bushes.

He gasps - the eyes widen, disappearing further into the wilderness as the sound of footsteps echoes further and further into the distance.

Knuckles opens his mouth, whirling around to tell the Chief, but Pachacamac is gone.

The clearing is deserted.

The echidna turns back. What was once confusion on his face morphs into hasty determination, his brows knitted together.

Without saying a word, Knuckles breaks off, sprinting after the mysterious figure.

* * *

He’s panting, hurry, _hurry, don’t let go--_

He slips, crying out as he tumbles to the ground. He lets go, and she gasps.

“Miles!” She hushes the kit’s whimpering, gathering him up into her arms as she breaks into a run. “It’s okay, everything’s going to be fine, we-- we just need to keep running!”

He cradles his mother’s chest, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. His twin tails, one bandaged at the limb, wrap themselves around him.

She wipes a crust of dirt off of Miles’ cheek, breathing heavily as the greenery of Green Hill gives way to the cliffs and loops of its western side.

In the sky, a storm brews.

_“M-Mom…”_ Miles sniffles, and she holds him tighter.

“Shhh, it’s okay, we’re going to be-- we’ll be just fine,” She pants.

* * *

Knuckles leaps off a nearby cliff, one that overlooks a loop-the-loop off the coast of Green Hill.

As he glides through air, he sees a figure running towards the structure, cloaked in brown, a glow coming from their tail.

* * *

Miles looks up for a moment, looks to the side - his mother’s single tail is clasping a bright, green gem.

A distant cry -- _they’ve been found._

She starts running faster. Miles whimpers, snuggling further into her grip.

* * *

Knuckles keeps his distance, the five-year old spotting a crowd of his kind trailing behind the figures below.

Spears are in their hands.

Knuckles’ heart skips a beat; he almost loses altitude. _What’s going on?_

* * *

Spears start digging into the ground, centimeters behind them.

_Thunk--_

Miles wails.

_\--Thunk-thunk--_

“--Shhhhh--” His mother desperately tries to keep running, but the world around her is blurring and she is so, so _tired._

_\--Thunk--_

_“We found the Emerald!”_

_\--Schunk!_

His mother gasps, and falls to the ground.

Miles rolls out of her arms, sending him to the soil below.

* * *

Knuckles lands on the leaves of a palm tree, innocent eyes huge with terror.

His jaw is open, agape, and he takes his mask off, watching as his clan closes in on the—

* * *

(Time slows.)

Miles cries out, the cloak on his shoulders tearing off in the wind.

His mother’s tail falls limp - a Chaos Emerald rolls right next to the orange-furred kit.

_“There they are!”_

Miles groans - he gets up to his feet, rubbing at his tear-stained eyes.

He sees his mother, face-down, an spear through her chest.

_“...Mom?”_ Miles mewls, his voice breaking.

(Time speeds up.)

Large, intimidating figures are running towards him, and Miles, through choked breaths, scrambles for the emerald on the ground and _runs._

He’s panting, _hurry, hurry, hurry!_

(In the sky, a storm thunders down.)

  
  


...

Night falls.

Knuckles does not go back to the tribe.

He _won’t_ go back to the tribe. He will _not_ go back to the tribe!

Petrified, frozen in fear, he hides in the palm trees of Green Hill, staring at the mask in his hands.

_“This is a symbol of the Echidna Clan’s power.”_ Pachacamac’s voice echoes inside his head. _“It is a symbol of our pride.”_

Knuckles continues to stare at it, his lip wobbling.

_“You will make a fine member of our tribe.”_

_“No!”_ Knuckles suddenly screams, snapping the mask into two. He leaps to his feet, making the tree shake, as he throws the pieces in his hands out into the distance.

He breathes - in, out, in, out.

He falls back down — tears run down his face.

_“I see so much potential in you.”_ Pachacamac’s voice taunts inside his head.

“Shut up!” Knuckles clenches the sides of his head.

_“You make me so proud.”_

“Shut up—!”

_“You’re the son I never had.”_

Knuckles screams, crying out into the night. He curls up amongst the leaves, sobbing.

His clan was kind. They did not hurt people.

_You could’ve stopped them._

Why did they chase her?

_You did nothing._

**Why did they hurt her?**

_You watched and did nothing._

**_Why did they kill her?_ **

_You’re just like them._

* * *

Just a few miles away lies a young fox, cold and alone, cradling a jewel.

He hiccups now and then; rubs at the tears and snot clumping his fur; hugs his mother’s coat around his freezing self and wraps his tails around the gem he holds.

_“Mom…”_ He whispers, his breathing shaky and his voice high.

It was his fault — his fault the village chased them out, his fault they ran, his fault the strangers _attacked—_

Miles lets out a shrill whimper, and hugs the emerald tighter.

...It’s so cold.

Miles cries, curling up onto himself.

_I want to go home. I want to see Mom. I don’t wanna run anymore._

_I don’t wanna have two tails anymore._

It was all his fault.

Suddenly, there’s a noise.

Miles freezes - his ears swivel around, and he slowly uncurls, trying to look around.

_Thump._

_“Aaah!”_ Miles suddenly scatters back, letting the emerald in his grasp tumble onto the ground.

...It’s…

...Miles cocks his head, brows furrowing. The stranger in-front of him is crouched downwards, like a frog, eyes wide and puffy at the edges.

Their red fur seems to be an echidna trait, but— but they’re not wearing anything. No mask, no jewelry.

They’re just a kid.

“Wh—who are you…?” Miles tiredly stammers, still spread out on the ground.

The child blinks, seemingly caught off-guard. “...Knuckles.

Who’re you?”

* * *

Night passes, and in broad daylight, a tribe corners a treasure.

“These rings will be your most important possession.” Longclaw hands a drawstring bag to her son, as swiftly as she can. The arrow in her side digs deep, deeper than she first assumed.

A gasp escapes her beak, and her eyes flicker with fear. They glance over the clan before her, of which is chasing after them at a ferocious speed.

She quickly turns back to the child at her side, gesturing to the ring portal behind her. “If you’re ever discovered, use one.”

Sonic stares at her, eyes glimmering with unshed tears as he softly shakes his head.

She barely holds his gaze, instead moving to stand in-front of him. 

_“Never_ stop running,” Longclaw chokes out. She spreads her wings, covering the blue hedgehog behind her. _“Now go!”_

* * *

Days pass. Months pass. Years pass.

One morning, a certain echidna overlooks the view upon the mountain on which he stands. Behind him, a shoddily-crafted shack stands tall, roof buried in snow from Ice Cap Zone’s constant snowstorms.

Out of the shack exits Miles— _Tails,_ as he now goes by, holding a certain emerald-infused transmitter and looking quite pleased with himself.

Knuckles raises a brow at his friend’s seemingly off-kilter attitude. “Look who slept in today.”

“Shhh!” Tails gestures a finger to his mouth, before pointing back down at the screen of his gadget. He approaches Knuckles, who leans over to see something marked by a cyan-coloured circle on the grid-marked screen.

“...And what is that, exactly?”

“I’ve managed to track him down.” Tails barely conceals the excitement in his voice. “After all this time, I’ve found him!”

Knuckles looks to the gadget, and back to Tails.

His brow cocks even higher. “...Who?”

“You know! The hedgehog!” Tails looks at his friend in bewilderment. “Remember? The super-fast hedgehog your tribe was trying to—“

The fox trails off at Knuckles’ suddenly-somber expression. Then his eyes widen as he realises what words he poured out of his mouth.

“Uh— I mean—“

“No, I don’t care about _that.”_ Somehow, Knuckles can tell. “It’s just— you’ve been looking for him this whole time?”

Tails blushes. “Um— well— I couldn’t help b-but be curious, I know that ever since that night, uh—“

“Yeah, that’s fine, but—“ Knuckles shakes his head. “We don’t have any reason to go after him. That happened years ago, Tails.”

“No reason, huh?” Tails, seemingly unimpressed, presses a button and watches the screen change its display to a different map completely. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember that disturbance we felt a few days ago?”

“Wh—“ Knuckles thinks for a split-second before his eyes widen, and he looks straight to Tails, who is nodding along. “The Mushroom Planet?!”

“Someone travelled there by way of ring portal.” The fox elaborates. “The only other person who has access to rings—“

“—Is that hedgehog.” Knuckles concludes, slackjaw and somewhat in awe.

“Yep!” Tails grins. “That’s the logical conclusion, considering what we know about the infamous Longclaw.” He shakes his head. “Anyway, I tracked down the place where the portal was originally opened.”

“And you’re thinking of going there.” Knuckles deadpans.

“Uh-huh!” Tails nods. “If the hedgehogs’ there, then they can help us out. I need to know about Mushroom Hill, whether or not whoever travelled there is dangerous - and I need a way to get back here as well.”

“Because we only have one ring.” Knuckles groans. “And you need me to come with.”

“ For emotional support, yes.” Tails only smirks, pocketing his gadget for now. “If we’re not too late, we’ll meet the hedgehog, and we can get the answers we need. Easy!”

“Fineeee.” Knuckles groans.

“Yay!” Tails pumps a fist in the air. He brings out their only ring, holding it for Knuckles to see. Then, in one fell swoop, he throws it forward, and a portal opens to a seemingly-green place, overlooked by a cliff.

The fox turns to the echidna, who seems strangely intimidated. “Whenever you’re ready!”

He then jumps through the portal, completely leaving Knuckles behind.

“Wh—“ The red-furred echidna does a double take. “Hey! Wait up!”

He then leaps through the ring, right before it closes on Ice Cap’s highest peak.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> im telling u tails just fucking zoomed off towards green hills and knuckles just fell out of the portal right after, this is exactly what happened i have insider info—
> 
> Anyway woah! You made it! Thanks so much for reading dudes! Everybody’s posting movie sonic fanfiction and its making me so happy, you guys are awesome! this was really enjoyable to write and it got me out of a very short writer’s block, thank you weird children’s film for watering my crops
> 
> either way, hope yall have a good night! or day or morning, maybe even afternoon, who knows :D thanks so much for reading! ❤️


End file.
